The Dragon and the Demon
by StoneSabre
Summary: A series of one shots centering around Zhao Yun and Zhang Liao. Part 3 - New Blood. No matter where the Demon goes, suffering follows. The path of the warrior dictated that there were no limits to Zhang Liao's pain. Realizing just how close Zhao Yun's pure spirit stood from the hands of evil, the only thing that mattered to Zhang Liao was keeping him safe. Contains Bara/Yaoi
1. The Gift of Time

**Time for something a little...unorthodox**

**Okay, so this story is actually a series of one shots centering around my completely made up and original Zhao Yun x Zhang Liao pairing.**

**Several of these stories will be lemons, smut, Bara, Yaoi, ect, whatever. Not all of them will have sex, but most will contain romance. Some of them will feature other characters, but the stories will mostly center around Zhao Yun and Zhang Liao. These are all stand alone stories - though I may link or relate some of them - each taking place in one of various continuities (historical, hypothetical, Warriors Orochi, AU, or even modern AU.) Some will be lighthearted and humorous, others will be tragic and sad. Some will be uplifting and heartwarming, and some will be dark.**

**(Disclaimer: Zhao Yun, Zhang Liao and all Dynasty Warriors, Samurai Warriors, and Warriors Orochi characters are property of Koei Tecmo. The stories and situations presented in this series of one-shots are purely fictional and of my creation and are not based on any existing context within Dynasty Warriors/Romance of the Three Kingdoms canon or historical records.)**

**With that, my first ever published lemon. Enjoy!**

* * *

The Gift of Time.

Universe: AU

Characters: Zhao Yun x Zhang Liao, Liu Bei (towards the beginning)

Genre: Bara, Humor.

Rating: M for moderately explicit sex and mild language.

* * *

_Lost time is never found again._

** -Benjamin Franklin **

* * *

It had been a long battle. From head to toe, Zhao Yun could feel exhaustion practically pulsating through his blood. No amount of training could have readied him for the length of this battle. Yet, he had to keep standing to keep up the class act. The warriors of Shu stood in the enemy's main camp whilst Liu Bei carried on his speech. The stench of dirt, sweat and rotting blood plagued the air. As Zhao Yun listened to his lord speak, he could hear his voice deepened by the strain of years of fighting on his back.

"Fellow warriors. After such a long and grueling battle," Liu Bei announced with obvious strain, battered down in much the same way as everyone else. "We have been able to push back our enemy. However they are large in number; our forces I fear grow weaker, but so do theirs. The coming days will prove to be a great trial for us. I recommend everyone get a good night sleep, for I don't know what tomorrow will bring. You are free to go everyone. I thank all of you for you're effort today."

Zhao Yun rested on a bench near the edge of the garrison after the generals had dispersed. His arms rested in his lap. Zhao Yun had not suffered any wounds, but his body ached from sheer exhaustion alone. Finally getting a chance to rest, he realized that walking back to camp would be too tiring. Hell, he didn't even feel apt to taking a horse.

_Am I getting too old for this? Shit, how does Huang Zhong always have so much energy?_

There was no question Zhao Yun was aging. When he had first joined Liu Bei, he felt as if he could fight nonstop if it meant protecting his lord. But his waning stamina became more of an uphill battle with age in recent years.

He felt a familiar heat radiating near him as he heard footsteps approach him. He didn't look up; he already knew who it was.

"You can't possibly be worn out now..." Zhao Yun ignored his condensing tone. Of course these days, war wasn't the only thing that occupied his energy "...after just that much?"

"It's only because of you that I am."

The Shu warrior began to rub his temple. He had no desire to put up with Zhang Liao's bragging. He did it in the most subtle way, but Zhao Yun had known him long enough to know when he was trying to put him down.

"So it's my fault again?"

Zhao Yun clenched his teeth.

_Shut up, Zhang Liao, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up Zhang Liao shut up, SHUT UP, **SHUT UP!**_

Zhao Yun felt the warrior's hand upon his shoulder.

"Don't stress about it."

Zhang Liao sat next the Shu general.

"These battles are getting harder for us to fight. Can't deny that there comes a point when age starts to catch up to you." The Wei general chuckled.

"If you're going to start insisting that I care about my age, then you can save me the lecture," Zhao Yun snapped. "So long as there exists threats to the Kingdom of Shu, and my lord's ambition goes unrealized, I'll fight until my bones shatter."

"Typical."

Oh, how Zhao Yun hated having to put up with Cao Cao and his goons. They could never understand just the amount of dedication it took to serving more than just theirselves.

"The thing is, Zhao Yun, I'm also a man who dislikes letting the winds of time control my destiny. I understand you more than anyone. But even I have my limits. Now, surviving on the battlefield is one thing, but I'm not immortal. If I could find a way to stop it I would, but I can't. We're always going to get older."

Zhang Liao held his fingers to Zhao Yun's lips when he tried to say something. "Don't try to deny it! The added stress is only going to make it worse. I was just like you three ago...trying to tell myself that it didn't matter. Eventually I made peace with the fact that I was past my prime, and I no longer felt weighed down by it."

The one thing Zhao Yun hated more than putting up with a Wei soldier was putting up with a Wei soldier that was right.

Zhao Yun sighed. He really couldn't say anything. He knew that Zhang Liao spoke the truth.

"You smell like a rotten noodle broth," Zhang Liao quipped abruptly.

"Likewise."

"Come on. The bathing rooms should still be open at this hour. Let's get ourselves cleaned up..." Zhang Liao turned to him with a devious half-smile "...and I'll help you relieve some of that stress?"

"I suppose that's what I'm here for. Knock yourself out."

Zhang Liao burst into a rolling laughter. Zhao Yun couldn't help but roll his eyes.

He had to admit, he felt better already.

* * *

Zhao Yun slipped out of the last of his essentials, and hung it on the clothing pole. Zhang Liao stood near him with a white towel hanging around his waist. Beside him was an open water coffin used for spa treatment. The Shu general glanced at the older warrior, noticing him with him eyes closed and his arms crossed over his bare chest.

"What are you thinking about?"

Zhang Liao opened his eyes, but he didn't make eye contact with him.

"When this war is over..." Zhang Liao started... "Would you be willing to come with me back to Wei?"

That question was so sudden, but it reemerged a sense of foreboding dread. He knew he would have to have this conversation eventually.

If someone had asked that question years ago, Zhao Yun would never have considered it. His loyalty lied only to Shu. If the wars were to ever end in his lifetime, Zhao Yun desired to live with his fellow warriors in Shu.

But for what purpose? Was it loyalty? Zhao Yun had served Liu Bei since he was but a mere wonderer. He was one of the first to swear loyalty to him, but he was never bound by an oath. He could never have a place in Liu Bei's heart like that if his sworn brothers.

"Only if there will be peace," Zhao Yun answered in a surprisingly truthful way. Really when he thought about, if peace between Shu and Wei could be maintained, what reason did he have not to go with Zhang Liao? There was no denying it now, he had a connection to the Wei general that he never had with anyone before.

"Then let's work at keeping it that way. After all, if there's one thing that we can depend on to get better with age, it's our minds. It'll be difficult, but it'll be better for us in the long run."

For all of his faults, the thing about Zhang Liao that he always respected was his undying determination in the face of adversity. Perhaps that is why he accepted his offer. It gave him a chance, as a man with another, to further his own wisdom. It was Zhao Yun's greatest hope in these confusing, ever changing times.

"That seems to be an offer I cannot refuse."

"Good!" Zhang Liao patted his shoulder. "Now get in the water."

Zhao Yun rolled his eyes again, before stepping in the leaning over the coffin and laying himself down into the open, broad container. Zhang Liao supported him as Zhao Yun lowered himself. Once most of his body was submerged in the shallow water, Zhao Yun then lowered his head, touching the bottom of the coffin so that his ears were underneath the water. Zhang Liao stood over the Shu general's head. Zhao Yun closed his eyes as he felt the older general's calloused fingers caress his head, sinking through his hair and gently into his scalp. The older warrior took in a deep breath.

After a few minutes, the sounds that gracefully carved through the water swelled in his ears. Soon, there were daunting, hollow sounds erupting through his ears as he felt his head lightening. Life moving about their surroundings flowed into him, from footsteps in the hallway to negotiations in meeting rooms and nocturnal wildlife in the surrounding habitats and wilderness. The water grew colder, and soon he could feel Zhang Liao's faint breathing against his cold face.

Zhang Liao was performing a ritual called "Zhangti." It was a form of hypnosis that he learned from a monk (at least he said he was a monk) that he met when he ran away from home when he was an adolescent. It allowed the hypnotizer to manipulate the water's effects on the receiver's body to either heighten or suppress stimulations, requiring a very focused transfer of chi. It was said that one who practiced it enough could eventually learn to control people's thoughts. For this reason, the practice was said to be forbidden among legends and religious scriptures (which made Zhao Yun question the legitimacy of this "monk") because it could be used to "poison the mind with unholy thoughts". Zhang Liao, however, was able to hold Zhao Yun's trust by teaching the ritual to the younger warrior, and the two agreed that they would keep the knowledge of the ritual between the two of them as another one of their secrets. Wrong though it was, Zhao Yun liked keeping these secrets with him. He felt it strengthened their connection, in a sense.

Zhao Yun's breathing slowed to a level completely inaudible. Zhang Liao opened his eyes to look upon his half conscious, now shivering form.

"How do you feel?" Zhang Liao asked.

"The water is...really cold." Zhao Yun whispered somewhat incoherently. Once Zhao Yun was able to hear Zhang Liao coherently through the water - and his lessened state of mind - that was the sign that the hypnosis was complete.

"Alright, that'll be enough."

Zhang Liao supported the half conscious general as he got out of the coffin and stood him on his feet. Beads of water slipped off his bare form and splashed on the wooden floor. The Wei general removed the towel from his waist and began to dry him off. As the cloth brushed over Zhao Yun well-toned body, Zhang Liao smirked to himself. He stared at the trailing beads of water with wanting eyes as they slid down Zhao Yun's skin. He threw the towel aside wanting to explore the rest of him with his hands.

His hardened palm brushed over his damp skin. The sight of the Shu warrior's ruffled, spiky hair falling over his freshly moist peach skin filled him to his passionate drive. His hand glided over to his chest, rising and falling with his slow breathing. Zhao Yun uttered a drunken moan when he felt his nipple being rolled in his fingers. In his hypnotized state, his heightened nerves sent pleasure dancing one through him with almost excessive intensity.

"That's good..." Zhao Yun whispered.

"Just relax, Zhao Yun," Zhang Liao's hand rolled down to the younger warrior's organ. "Just let me do all the work, and I'll get rid of that stress for you."

Zhang Liao stroked the shaft and eased his hand back in a painfully slow movement. His smirk grew Zhao Yun's face contorted in drunken pleasure.

"Yeah, that's it. Keep doing that."

Zhao Yun couldn't stop his hands coming up to rub his pink knobs. Seeing the Shu general, submitting to the desires of his body, had Zhang Liao wooden in seconds. He had to move Zhao Yun's arms away to keep himself from completely losing all restraint.

"What did I say?"

The Shu general growled in frustration, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything.

"Just let me handle it."

Zhao Yun's manhood pulsating in his grasp, Zhang Liao's face twisted in his focus to give Zhao Yun the highest level of stimulation. He waited, teasing the warrior with his inaction, as his eyes skimmed over his chiseled body as it flexed with arousing rhythm.

Zhang Liao's mouth moved over Zhao Yun's nipple. His tongue circled, stabbed, and swiped the pink nob. Zhao Yun, putting his arm across the other man's back, gasped uneasily as he felt soft, warm flesh intensely rubbing the darkened circle. The hand around his now fully erect pole twisted and stroked with more speed. Zhang Liao moved to the other nipple and treated it to his tongue. Already he could feel some of his substance leaking out of his organ. Zhang Liao's grip tightened and his stroking continued to accelerate. He still had an expression of focus as the younger warrior pulsated pleasure through his being. He pressed himself against the Shu warrior, feeling the heat that exuded from him, a sensation once foreign but now comfortingly familiar.

Zhao Yun gasped when he felt himself being lifted off of his feet. Soon he was on the floor, slightly in a daze from the quick movement, sitting leaned back on his forearms with Zhang Liao now lying over him. In their sudden closeness Zhang Liao's organ was touching his own. The older warrior dragged his tongue across his chest before digging and biting at his darkened nob again. With their manhoods nestled together, Zhang Liao grasp them tightly with his free hand and stroked them together with torturously slow assertion.

Zhao Yun needed to assure him of how fast he was coming to the edge, but his mind quickly went blank. He couldn't focus on anything. In his hypnotized state, all he could think about was the passionate flames conjuring in his body. Feeling Zhang Liao's heated body - his cock against his own as he paced his strokes, wrapping him head to toe in a spell of his manipulative touch - satisfied his darkest desire.

"Zhang...dammit...ahh!

Zhao Yun's body trembled and tightened when he felt two fingers pushing into his entrance, showing his muscles flexing with alluring rhythm, as the older general's lips sank into his neck. With lust burning through him with such intensity that could melt his skin, his organ pulsated and set off it's release. Arching his back, he shot his warm seed in bursts across his chest, some hitting Zhang Liao's body and face, until his load had been emptied. He steadied his gasping, breathing through the fiery aftermath of ecstasy as he slumped on the floor.

Zhang Liao stood above the younger general, readying himself to ejaculate. His hand still wrapped around his own shaft as he enjoyed a moment to himself before stroking again, positioning to empty himself on Zhao Yun's limp body. That teasing half smirk came back at the sight the Shu general covered in his own cum.

"That look suits you quite well, Zilong."

"Damn you, Wenyuan," Zhao Yun said clearly. It was the first time he had said something coherent since he had been hypnotized. Zhang Liao just chuckled at his response as he continued to pleasure himself. "You actually don't look too bad yourself."

A smirk appeared on Zhao Yun's face as he watched Zhang Liao consume himself in his own pleasure, numerous scars and light sheets of dark hair lining his body. His figure was slighty bigger in proportion but not quiet as toned in muscle as Zhao Yun's more lean body. Seeing Zhang Liao face twisting with contentment and arousal, he felt him becoming erect again.

"You ready for this?" The Wei general shuddered. He was beginning to tremble.

"Like I said, it's all yours."

"Hehehe...ah..." His laughter quickly devolved into light moans. He moved his hand faster in the wake of his imminent climax. His eyes scrunched and his teeth clenched. He breathed through his nose as he snarled profoundly. A deep, strained growl his last warning before before shooting his load. Zhao Yun frowned when the warm cum hit his chest, but he couldn't deny how arousing it felt.

"Now I hope you're going to clean that up." Zhao Yun muttered sarcastically.

Zhang Liao uttered several gruff moans before slowly collapsing over the younger warrior, still breathing heavily. After a while, Zhao Yun observed the Wei general's sudden calmness, and as he held onto Zhao Yun as they lie down together, relaxation emerged on his face.

"Feel better now, Zilong?"

"Maybe I should be asking you that question," Zhao Yun replied.

"Hm?" Zhang Liao raised his eye brow.

"Be honest, Wenyuan. You were just as tired as I was after that battle."

He opened his mouth to respond as he always did, but he found himself speechless for once. Zhang Liao pressed himself back up, now sitting up on his knees.

"You know me too well, Master Zhao Yun."

He hadn't used the word "master" in a long time, since before they were in relationship, when they were no more to each other than enemies who served different kingdoms. What was this sudden use of an old formality spawned from. Did he no longer desire being on these terms with him? Was he backing out?

Zhao Yun rose to a sitting position. He grabbed Zhang Liao by the neck and pulled him down to lock their lips together. The kiss was slow, and they stayed that way for what felt like hours, but passionate as it always was between fierce warriors, if for different reasons than usual - perhaps which included a faint desperation.

Once they finished their exchange of heat, Zhang Liao held to Zhao Yun as the younger warrior rested against his torso.

"Forgive me," Zhang Liao sighed, "but quite frankly, I grow tired of fighting."

"Hey, don't stress about." Zhao Yun's up into Zhang Liao's metallic gaze with determination. "We'll move to other things...in time. Right?"

"And until that time comes, you'll be with me?"

"Certainly. Think of it as something to hold onto in the meantime...a promise if you will...so that when we can finally live in peace, we'll know it's a time we can look forward to."

Zhang Liao chuckled again, this time not with arrogance or amusement like usual, but with a gentle endearment. "In that case, until that times come, I'll make it worth the wait."

Zhao Yun gave a sincere smile in response.

"Likewise."

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Reviews are much appreciated, please and thank you in advance

-StoneSabre


	2. In Good Faith

Universe: AU

Characters: Zhao Yun X Zhang Liao

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Rated: T for light smut

* * *

_"If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve."_

** -Lao Tzu **

* * *

From a large crowd, unusual in their unity, I heard voices from faces I cannot see. They were speaking to, though not speaking at me; they could not see me. They were eager as they sat at their tables spotting the banquet hall.

I pushed the curtain aside only slightly, desiring to see they're faces from behind the enshrouding shadows of the crimson sheets. They encompass all whom I came to refer to as my friends, as well as my enemies, and even people I had never seen before. Anyone who could possibly be of any importance to me graced my presence.

Everyone I had ever lied to.

I let go of the curtain as I let myself slip back into darkness again. They held me at arms length - friends, family, and enemies - to their judge, jury, and executioner. It felt as if I held out my very soul to be reprimanded. In their unsuspecting minds, the truth that I held carried such magnitude that I felt as if the weight of their judgement could shatter my skin.

I stepped back from curtain. The closer I came to this formal unveiling, the more the sensation of suffocating engrossed itself in my core; if I didn't choke to death from my own fear, I would surely choke on theirs.

In my solitude, I felt a hand upon my shoulder. Its calloused grip was firm, yet its familiarity breathed warmth upon my frozen skin.

"They're waiting for us."

A melancholic statement, almost foreboding. Behind his calm voice, I could sense the poison of dread etched in his core seeping into my flesh. There had never been any bloody battle where I felt more like I was marching to my own execution.

I took in a pained breath, it's strained pressure constricting me until I felt numb, and released it slowly.

"If we go through with this, there's no going back."

"We're way past the point of no return, Zhao Yun."

I turned my gaze to his. Even in the darkness, his eyes still shined with a defined metallic texture. Looking back into mine, his firm expression broke into a determined smirk.

I knew now that there was no one more important to me than Zhang Liao. I needed him to give me strength. In the times I had lived within his presence, I discovered myself changing from the inside, doing things that betrayed everything I had ever believed in, and it scared me. But as my legs gave out below me under the weight of confusion and guilt, I found the grace of a new purpose, and with his strength I was able to stand.

If I lost him...

When I saw him begin to pull the curtains back to reveal himself, cold blood proceeded to ravage my body stemming from my pounding heart.

"Wait! Wait! wait wait wait wait!"

Pleads erupted through my throat with more desperation than I had ever shown. I could feel the corners of my eyes burning with tears. Zhang Liao flinched away from the curtains, and looked back at me.

"I can't do this."

The words felt almost painful for me to utter. It was a proclamation I had never made before. For the first time, I had given in to my fear. The numbing feeling of my heart's surrender tore my conscience practically to oblivion. But if our secret got out - if our outright defiance was exposed - I knew what would happen to Zhang Liao.

"Zhao Yun...we have to."

I shook my head. "If they know the truth, it won't just change everything for us, it will for them too."

Zhang Liao sighed, breaking eye contact with me. It was frustrating for him to persuade me to see reason and fail, but right now I didn't care about what was right. I only cared about him.

"It's a change they won't be willing to accept. They won't just kill us, they won't bother shaming us, they'll erase us. They'll get rid of any evidence that we even existed, just like they did my father."

"How?" He challenged my assumptions with his usual stern determination as he met my gaze again. "We're strong enough to fight them together if they reject us. You know that."

"And then what? We'll be left with nothing! No one will accept us! We'll be outcasts!" My eyes narrowed to hold in the building up tears. "We can't win this battle. There is nothing for us to gain and so much for us to lose. I can't...I can't..."

I didn't realize how much tension had built up in body until I felt hand clasped in his. I relaxed somewhat to his touch, but it's familiar warmth only brought me more distress.

"I can't lose you," I uttered through clenched teeth as I tightened my grip on his hands, "I can't. Not you too."

"You won't lose me Zhao Yun." Zhang Liao brought my hand up to eye level. He sent me a smile, as reassuring of one as he could muster "No matter what happens to us, it won't change how either of us feel. But we can't depend on other to stand for those who are too weak to fight for themselves. There are others like us, and even if the people out there are don't want to see it, I'm not scared of facing their scorn."

I had to look away from him. "You don't understand. I don't care about any of them. I care about you, and the promise I made to my father."

"You were scared into making that promise. You're letting them control you."

"If that's what keeps you safe...

"Safe? You think I wanted to be kept safe when all of this began? You're stronger than this Zhao Yun, and don't you dare think that you're father would have wanted you to hide from the world. Now, are you willing to stand with me?

The guilt of holding Zhang Liao back

because of my own fears was sickening to bare, but it couldn't compare to the way I felt when my father died. The images of the day I watched my father being taken away, never to see him again, bore a heavy weight upon my heart. My father was executed, and all honor to his name eradicated, just for standing up for what he believed in because it differed from those at the top of the power structure. I promised him never to let that happen again. I didn't care whether I lived or died, but if I let Zhang Liao suffer the same fate as my father, I would gladly welcome the death that my shame would bring me. Even if I were to escape execution myself, I would not be able to live with the guilt. I would surely be dead within short time.

Almost as inaudible as it was strained, I whispered the answer neither of us wanted to hear.

"No..."

With that, Zhang Liao stepped back, clenching his fists with crystal clear intent. That gesture made me shudder against chills of sharp ice. He would never back down from what he thought was right, but he was too stubborn for his own good. A feint hatred conjured in my core. He was going to make me relive the day I lost my father, whether or not I wanted to.

My body was ripe with emotions that readied to explode forth. I began to shake as I forced back trembling sobs. If Zhang Liao was going to abandon me, then nothing I did mattered. Whatever decision I made, I knew I would lose him. My eyes clenched to the pain of that realization, further blotted by burning tears.

I felt his hand cup my face as he wiped away the tears. I looked up to see him smiling at me.

"Okay, I understand. It's too soon."

I should have felt relief at his words, but all I could feel was a void of remorse that welled inside of me, ripping my skin. For the first time, I had held Zhang Liao back. Why did I feel like this? So many thoughts and emotions were spinning with such fury that my mind became a carrousel of confusion. I was breaking under the weight of my own hesitance.

As if sensing the weakness inside of me, his arms began to wrap around me. With strength that always seemed to resonate from his presence, he was able to keep me standing. It was that feeling that lead me my reluctance to let him go.

"I'm so sorry. I can't bring myself to put you at risk. Nothing else would matter if I lost you."

I needed to let him know, by any means, that I needed him with me. That was all that mattered to me.

"I understand Zhao Yun. But know this; they can banish us, execute us, or torture us until our bones break, but the pain will never be great enough for me to want to take back the times we shared."

"But would it even be worth it? They won't accept us."

"Don't worry. One of them will."

"Like who?"

"Men like your father."

There it was again. That almost mysterious power he had to instill strength in me.

"If theirs one thing I don't doubt, Zhao Yun, it's that your father wouldn't take back what he did. He would want the same out of you."

"You have so much faith in them. How can you be so sure that they would listen, instead of sentencing us to the sane fate as my father."

Zhang Liao shook his head. "It's not them I have faith in. It's you, Zhao Yun."

His gaze pulled me into his spell. He stated his words with such honesty and conviction, I could not help but lay down my own faith in his words.

"You're stronger than any man that I know. If anyone has the power to change this land, it's you."

The Wei general gently caressed my cheek before pulling himself towards me. He left slow, heartfelt kiss upon my lips. I closes my eyes to the sensation.

After he pulled away, he held me gently by the shoulder, whenever you're ready.

Zhang Liao stood a distance away from me. The feeling of his lips fresh on my skin created a longing to always be with him. I faltered to his touch. The fear I felt for his life racking my mind returned with full force. There was no denying it now. No matter how much faith he had in me, I could never bring myself to put his life in danger.

"I'll never be ready...to risk letting you go"

I turned away from him and began to exit stage. With hesitation, I looked back to Zhang Liao. He showed no disappointment or discreet sternness. He started smiling again. With his unique features gracing his hardened face, the sight was able to pierce through the shrouding darkness. His intent was clear. He still had faith in me.

Against strained breaths, I felt my heart constricting. I wouldn't have Zhang Liao by my side for much longer, I knew now. He was going to die because of me. No matter how strong I thought I was, I couldn't win a battle against the land itself. Because of my past decisions, I was forced to fight a battle I had already lost - a battle I couldn't even bring myself to fight. I had lost my father to that battle, and if I were to lose Zhang Liao to it as well, there was no way I would be able to stop it.

"I'm sorry."

With my last words, I walked away from him, faster with each step until I found myself running, into the darkness of the castle.

I suddenly stopped myself when I found myself outside. It was quiet. The the deep indigo of the silent sky quickly painted in me a sense of loneliness. It was times like these that I wished I could talk to my father, but he didn't even have so much as a grave stone that I could visit.

I ran to a nearby creek. Standing over it, I crouched down and looked into it's reflective surface. I was a splitting image of my father on the outside, but I wasn't sure if I could ever bring myself to do what he did. No one else could provide guidance to me in this situation but him. Would he really be proud of me for fighting a battle I couldn't win, or would he want me to hide my secret if it meant protecting someone I loved?

"I can't stop him from doing what he thinks is right, but I don't want to lose him." my gaze lifted to the sky, where the moon did not shine and and stars shimmered beneath the black sheet. I thought I had embarked on a journey of self discovery when I accepted the love of the Demon of Hefei, only to find myself at the end of the road staring into the abyss. For the first time since my father had perished, I felt remorse for my decision. I found myself wishing that the Wei general and I had never met.

"What do I do?"

* * *

The space I had awoken to in my bed the next morning held an emptiness usually not there. I had grown accustomed to the warmth of another body occupying the space next to me.

I sat up rather hastily in my bed. I looked for another person - or any sound in the room - but I was only met with silence. My gaze wandered the room until a thin scroll sitting on the pillow beside me caught my eye. I'd grown used to these letters on the rare occasion that Zhang Liao would leave before I could awaken. Know where he had gone to always put me at ease. So I reached for the a scroll, but I hesitated when a faint breeze reached its frigid arm through the window. The chill hit my spine and sent shivers through my skin like a morbid foreboding.

I grabbed the scroll and slowly opened it before panning my eyes across the ink on the scratchy texture. Blood sliced through my veins like sharp ice as I realized the consequences that my hesitation had wrought.

_Everything that I do, it is because I love you. Farewell, Zhao Yun, until heaven reunites us._

_Your beloved_

_Zhang Liao_


	3. New Blood

Universe: Historical

Characters/Pairings: Zhao Yun x Zhang Liao, Zhang Liao x Lu Bu, Guan Yu (towards the beginning)

Genre: Bara, Hurt/Comfort, Psychological

Rating: M for violence and explicit sexual content

* * *

_I've been believing in something so distant_  
_ As if I was human_  
_ And I've been denying this feeling of hopelessness_  
_ In me, in me_

_ All the promises I made_  
_ Just to let you down_  
_ You believed in me, but I'm broken_

_ I have nothing left_  
_ And all I feel is this cruel wanting_

_ We've been falling for all this time_  
_ And now I'm lost in paradise_

**-Evanescence, "Lost in Paradise"**

* * *

Sweat poured down my searing face

My hands gripped the bed sheets with straining desperation.

I wanted to leave but my body was frozen

I wanted to scream, but my throat felt too dry.

A burning fear, all too familiar, but no less piercing, engulfed my skin through to my core.

I could hear it through the silencing shadows.

I looked for it frantically, but I could not see anything.

The thunder approached growing louder. Whatever emerged through the darkness, I could fight back.

I knew that I was capable.

But I couldn't.

The demon that haunted me in the night...I could not fight it. I was a part of it. With fear and contempt, the horror that I reap upon my enemies, I welcomed upon myself with all of my being.

Through the darkness, it's arm reached for me, and I closed my eyes as I prepared.

My screams were silenced.

All I could feel was the piercing fire searing through me.

* * *

I glued my eyes to a scripture as the brush in my hands ceased it's blackened dance upon it's scratchy surface. The words phased through my mind without as much as a semblance of meaning. The Saint of War continued his defined strokes upon the wall, his teachings wordless rambling through the empty academy.

I tried to wrap my thoughts around his teachings. I went over every word about the connection of the mind and body, the honing of the spirit, and the vitality of mercy and compassion. For months, I set my mind to my heart's connection to humanity, a connection that I knew did not exist.

"It's no use."

Guan Yu ceased his brush strokes when he heard my utterance. He gripped the brush uneasily.

"I'm leaving," I declared, standing with almost aggressive deliberation without even the courtesy of gathering my materials from the table.

"You've been avoiding me lately, Master Zhang Liao," he said, disgruntled, before I could pass the door "You haven't been keeping up with your studies."

"I realized that it all means nothing to me. It'll never make a difference."

"Is that what he told you?"

I froze just before I was out of earshot. In my pit, I could already feel a boiling rage. In hindsight, he didn't deserve what was coming, but I didn't care at the time. I simply grew tired if his judgement.

"I'm only doing this for your own good, Master Zhang Liao. It would be in your best interest to..."

I shook my head. "Best interest?!" I interrupted, angrily whipping back around to face him. "You know, you live this life of grandeur with you're 'sworn brothers' preaching all this about mercy and virtue and benevolence, only because you have ties to the imperial family."

The glare that he conveyed was most disapproving, but I continued, blindly trying to prove a point that I didn't have.

"You have no idea what it's like for the rest us, fighting just so we can survive. For a 'god of war' you really don't know the first thing about war do you?"

Guan Yu sighed as he shook his head. "In that case I'd like you to demonstrate your knowledge of the subject, young master. You think you know war because you're lord thrives in it. After all, They say the lord that you serve speaks volumes about you, Perhaps it was a mistake to expect more from you. It's all about power and fear to you. Isn't it?"

I didn't have the energy to fight against his confrontational tone. I was through resisting him. It mattered not if he gave up on me.

"I'm not who you think I am, Master Guan Yu. I'll never be who you want me to be."

I uttered my last word with the utmost declaration, before swiftly leaving the room. I meant not to speak another word to him. His "teachings" meant nothing to me, and I was angry that I had wasted so much time listening to his arrogant ramblings.

I was determined to put distance between myself and Guan Yu. My footsteps pierced through the hall with erratic rhythm. I spent months listening to his cookie cutter teachings about "inner peace" and "the potential for good in every human." Instead of keeping my eye on hardening my body and becoming a better warrior, I had wasted so much time thinking that I could change myself and become in touch with the "human spirit". Why was I so foolish to believe that I could hone a spirit that did not exist? No one could understand just how different I was from them.

They were human, and I wasn't.

I grunted abruptly as a sharp pain ragged my body to it's core. I immediately grabbed the wall, but it wasn't long before I had collapsed on the floor, holding myself up with a weak hand as I tried to push back the pain with strained breaths. I leaned myself against the wall, sitting there until the pain subsided.

I laid my eyes upon my waist, feeling a sticky warmth seeping through my robe. A fresh substance began to bleed through the torn skin and stained my robe with a brutal crimson. Uneasily I laid my hand on it to stop the blood flow, my breath rapidly increasing through the pain.

I tried standing, but exerting the effort only weakened me, draining me of my consciousness. No one was around, but I had to leave before any wandering eyes caught me.

"Zhang Liao!"

As if on cue, a voice called out to me as the drained out thuds of footsteps grew louder and faster as they approached me. I looked up with a stubborn growl. Though my vision blurred, obscuring the face of this gracious man, I knew him all the same.

"Zhao Yun..." I answered back, suddenly too weak to project my voice to any degree. I grimaced as he came down to my level and grabbed my hand. I hated when others saw me in my moment of weakness.

Zhao Yun quickly took notice of how much blood I was losing. "What happened? Who did this?" He desperately asked.

"It was nothing," I answered through clenched teeth. I took in a deep, pained breath before speaking again. "I was just wounded in battle is all."

Zhao Yun seemed too negligent to realize that I hadn't been to battle in a month's time. Either that, or he was too concerned with my condition to care that I was lying.

The next few moments seemed to whisk by in a hollow blur. I felt myself being stood up once again, supported by Zhao Yun's holding me over his shoulders. Though he moved us slowly through the hall, in my flailing state, I held myself together like a ship far out at sea during a raging storm, simply struggling to stand against the current.

I was gently lied across a soft surface - Whether I was on my bed or not I couldn't tell.

"Let me get this robe off of you." I heard him suggest.

When he reached for the laces of my robe, I grabbed his wrist with as much force as my weakened body could muster

"No."

The other general's showed confusion towards my resistance.

"I have to see it."

"Wait, Zhao Yun" I growled as I tried to push his hand away. I grimaced as the exerted effort only caused me more pain. I quickly realized that I had no choice but to give into his request.

The robe was slowly etched down my shoulders, exposing my bare torso. Zhao Yun immediately became flushed with a pronounced paleness.

"Oh my god," he gasped with clear shock, for upon my body, the blot of numerous scars and bruises of various age became visible to him for the first time. "Zhang Liao, who does this to you?"

I didn't know how to respond. I looked away, like an ashamed pup that had just upset it's master.

"You're losing too much blood," he said refocusing on the one large, fresh gash when it became obvious that I wouldn't answer, "It needs to be closed with any delay. I'm going to have to burn it. Stay here and keep pressure" he requested before exiting the room.

The spear general quickly departed the room, and with it a faint sense of security. Though I preferred not to let anyone see me weakened, I was grateful that Zhao Yun, of all people, was the one that found me like this.

Almost too quickly he had returned with a lit torch. The sight of it unnerved my weakened consciousness like a blood-covered blade would disturb an inexperienced

"I'm going need you to sit up."

He leaned in next to me and whispered as he grasped my hand in his, possibly in an effort to keep me calm.

"Hold your arms up." He inquired of me. I complied to his request. "This is going to hurt, but I'm going to get you through this."

Within the sizable distance he held it from me, I could already feel it's heat engulfing the wound. It inched closer in proximity, and I began to shiver as if I were covered in ice. I was not eager to endure the pain of what had already been inflicted, much less from Zhao Yun of all people.

As the fire grew more intense, my grasp grew tighter, desperate to seek comfort from the only person who could provide it. Yet he kept going. My breathing quickened, despite being too strained. The tightness in my lungs began to choke me from the inside.

I felt it's burning essence engulf my wound. The desperate gasps I uttered convulsed my body as I clentched my teeth to keep from screaming through the skin tearing blister. Through it all, I could feel Zhao Yun's grip tighten. Doing this must have been as painful for him as it was for me. That only came natural with his compassion. He pulled away the fire from my seared skin. I held on to him through the pain, but he needed to regain himself just as much as I did.

After inspecting his work, Zhao Yun quickly put the fire out. When I had regained my voice, neither of us spoke. I realized after some time that his hand was still clasped in mine. I made no move to let go. I wondered if he realized just how close he was to me. Not close enough, I realized soon.

Zhao Yun, his grasp still in mine, laid both our hands upon my torso. We locked gazes for a brief time. The downcast smile he gave me was almost surreal. How anyone could stare upon a demon with such compassion I did not know. But the feeling was almost too foreign, that I almost forgot my place on this earth. I returned the gesture, feeling in that moment as if I were human.

When reality came back to me, I quickly looked away again. I couldn't afford to delude myself for such empty pleasure.

"You shouldn't be here." Even at a whisper, the distress in my voice was obvious. Despite everything I felt, I had given up trying to deny how things were supposed to be. "You're not safe with me."

Zhao Yun somehow still managed to keep his smile. "Maybe not," he quipped, motioning over the charred skin, "but if I'm not here, who's going to keep you safe?"

"I can't be protected from myself..."

"Wenyuan..."

"...but I can protect you from myself."

I saw Zhao Yun wince at what seemed to be my own self-pity. He wasn't used to seeing me sell myself so weak, but what was best for him was all that mattered to me. For all the pain I had caused, all of it I endured as it propelled my life through an endless nightmare, the best I could do for him was keep him safe. If that meant that he could never know how I really felt about him, then so be it.

I urged Zhao Yun to leave once again. With a solemness in his posture, he finally complied. As I watched him leave, I tried to suppress the guilt I felt for causing him this sadness. He was the only man I knew with any empathy for me; any compassion for a demon. But no matter how much he wanted to help me, there was no salvation for me.

The least I could do was to keep him from being dragged into my hell.

It was perhaps for the best that I would face my end sooner rather than later.

* * *

The battlefield that lied before me drenched itself in the blood that I had spilt. With these merciless blades I had reaped the lives of my lord's enemies, but this victory could not have felt more empty. The dream of the warrior's glory was not mine to command. The pleasures of man cannot be held in the arms of a monster.

All the force and desire I could muster was in the name of my lord, the flying general. My pain, my passion. My strength, my weakness. My dreams, and my nightmares. My everything.

"You've done good work as usual Zhang Liao."

I turned slowly to face him as he emerged next to me.

"This was nothing for me. Battle is all that I live for. I cannot afford to give anything less."

"Precisely, Zhang Liao. It is that mindset that puts you above the rest...excluding me, of course."

"Of course. You've taught me well, lord Lu Bu."

"Hmph! Our work here is done. Let us head back. It's getting late."

"As you wish."

Before I could put any distance between us, I felt my lord's firm touch upon my shoulder.

"Zhang Liao."

I recoiled and faced him again to see him flash me a sly grin.

"I'll see you tonight."

The foreboding in his rumbling voice forced my skin to crawl. Still, with much ease in my voice I could muster, I responded between my teeth.

"I look forward to it."

* * *

The night that enshrouded the land outside of the window seemed almost divine under the full moon. It's silver rays seemed fit emanating from the halo of an angel. I stood at the window, completely in the nude, observing it's life giving omnipotence as if the doorway to another realm had opened before me. I dared not to be engrossed in it's radiance for I knew indulgence would only bring me the desire for something greater than anything I could ever hope to become.

But when I thought I could resist this urging, a figure in the distance caught my attention. A ray of light gleaming off of silver armor lead my eyes astray. I knew of the man who had emerged alone on the castle grounds. His presence at this hour graced me mysteriously. I presumed he was patrolling the area.

We had not spoken since the day he found me collapsed on the floor of the corridor. I did my best to avoid him at every turn, and he appeared to do the same for me, as I had insisted.

It was for the best. The feelings I possessed were only that...feelings. They meant nothing to me. A demon simply could not live in a human's world.

A broad hand was laid upon my shoulder. I couldn't hold down my shivers under his cold touch.

"How long have you been standing there?" I asked.

Soon, I felt my skin engulfed in a strong embrace. Despite the almost uncharacteristic gentleness of of it, There was a certain uneasiness in his grip. His hand landed on the charred skin of my abdomen.

"Not long enough." He replied nonchalantly, the growl in his bare chest rumbling darkly against my back. "I thought you'd be ready for me when I came up here, but you seem to be preoccupied with something else."

I continued my gaze into the silent night. The warrior in white was still present.

"Look, lord Lu Bu. Out there...what do you see?"

"I see a land beneath us, ready for us to fight and to conquer...together."

I couldn't hold back the sigh that escaped me.

"What is that you see, Zhang Liao?"

_All the pleasure of humanity, the opportunity for one to feel life's ultimate gift, and the people with a chance to live without sorrow,_ I thought to myself.

"Peace," I replied simply.

A ghostly image of tragic hope flowed through me. I wondered what would become of us when the world no longer needed us to wield our blades in combat. Of course there was always the possibility that the chaos would not end in my lifetime. But there was something inside of me that kept gnawing, no matter how I tried to resist it. If I could live long enough to see the end of the war. If I could ever get the chance to put down my blade.

"Master Lu Bu..." I called almost too quietly. "What will you do when peace is restored to the land?"

I felt the general shift behind me.

"I will simply prepare for the next time we are to wield our blades in combat...and I'm sure you would do the same..."

"Of course, my lord." I answered. No matter how much I thought that I could be human, I could not escape reality. There was no point in denying it.

"And yet...I have a feeling that you don't actually believe that."

"Why do you say that?"

"Your mind has been led astray. I found something in your room."

The general released his grasp from my body. I turned to face him just in time to see him reveal something he was holding behind him. I instantly recognized it as one of the scrolls that Guan Yu had given me. I quickly flinched away from him, shame obvious in my posture, despite my attempt to hide it as I turned away from him.

"Who gave this to you?" He interrogated nonchalantly, not a hint of understanding or disapproval in his voice.

"It was one of Liu Bei's men." I answered honestly, still looking away from him.

"I see. You think they can give you something that I can't."

"No! That's not it!" I exclaimed, my eyes darting towards him with desperation

"Shhhh." The general gently hushed me, as if he were talking to a child. "It's okay. As strong as you are you're still quiet a young warrior and therefore easily persuaded."

He closed the curtain over the window before us. The light from a nearby furnace suddenly replaced the night's radiance. This faint sensation of entrapment began to tug at my conscience. I had to step away. Lu Bu walked to the furnace. With his eyes reflecting the amber light, he threw the scroll into the flame.

"You would be wise to remember one thing, Zhang Liao. You need no human to bring you down to their level. I am the only you can trust."

When he stepped back in front of me, our bodies facing each other, he towered over me. The way his massive build enshrouded itself in the fire's radiance gave him the appearance of a creature from the very pit of hell. I felt smaller beneath his monstrous aura.

He looked down on me, and with obvious intent, he stated, "Liu Bei's men deserve no mercy. I'll show you that the best persuasion is the use of force."

Before I could react to his words, Lu Bu's hand was gripped forcefully around my neck. I could not find strength through his grasp to breath. I began to cough violently. He held me with ferocity in his gaze as he tightened his grip, crushing my airwaves as he pushed me back with massive size.

Blackness already began to emerge around my petrified gaze, but before my consciousness could escape me, a rough grip was placed on my shoulder. With his full strength he violently threw me away from him. I screamed as my head collided with a stone wall with a harsh thud.

The impact left me wholly disoriented, but I was still conscious. Before I could fully pick myself up, the other man's grip was firmly on me, pushing me forward and upright against the wall. He trapped me against the unforgiving surface as he readied his position of dominance over me. As I had feared, I felt something warm and pulsating touching my exposed entrance.

"My lord, please don't do this." I whimpered, knowing just how pathetic I must have looked to him. No matter how many times I was forced to suffer through it, I could never grow used to this pain. Lu Bu, the only being who could accept my affection, was also the only one capable of hurting me.

My body was alit with searing agony once he forced himself inside of me. "No! Stop! Please, it hurts!" I cried knowing that he would never listen. My wails were only drowned out by his forceful grunts as his massive weight pounded against me. No matter how much I screamed and begged for him to stop, The ordeal only fell upon me with more pain and confinement.

The force he used to entrap me in his grip tightened, digging into my flesh until my rough skin was broken through. Blood painfully streamed the fresh gashes underneath his merciless grip.

His thrusts grew faster and harder still, stretching me, ripping me in half. I could not find any more strength to scream or to resist as my body felt as if it were shrouded in frozen fire. I was just barely able to hold onto my fleeting consciousness. Tears silently fell through my burning eyes, mixing with the slow stream of blood from my forehead as I waited for the nightmare to end.

With a final push, Lu Bu violently relieved himself inside of me, releasing a lustful growl in the process. The substance shooting inside of me stung like cold steel digging into a burning wound, but my screams came out as nothing more than a raspy whimper.

The flying general's grip slowly unlatched from my arms, but with nothing holding me up, I was too weak to stand; I allowed myself to drop to my knees before falling on my side, my back turned to Lu Bu as I clutched myself in pain. Something warm began to leak from where his shaft had left my body. With how much pain I was in, I could only guess whether it was Lu Bu's seed, or my own blood...maybe both.

The room was almost silent for that moment; I could feel Lu Bu's malicious gaze burning into my back as his lustful snarls dissipated. I just wanted to run from him, hide all of my pathetic being from him...from everyone. But I couldn't. I was so weak I couldn't even stand.

"True warriors know only suffering, Zhang Liao. If you can endure this pain, then there is no enemy that can hurt you."

His voice lacked vigor that it possessed just moments prior. There was an almost solemn undertone to it. I couldn't really analyze it. My head pounded so much that I could barely think. The only thing I could grasp onto was the cruelty...and grim reality...of his words.

This was my life...

Footsteps leaving me in a rather disoriented rhythm was all I could hear as the blackness overwhelmed me. The last thing I heard before I lost all consciousness was the echo of the flying general's stifled sobs.

...Nothing would ever change.

* * *

_Though my eyes were filled with a thick blackness I suddenly felt myself standing. I stumbled somewhat as I opened my eyes, but everything was so blurry. How did I get here?_

_As my vision cleared, I saw a blurred but brightened figure standing in the distance against the backdrop of the clear sky. Though I could not make out his form I moved closer. He had his back turned to me as I stood closer to him, but something in me was saying that I knew this person._

_"Zhao Yun?"_

_He turned and looked towards me with a gaze I couldn't read. He stood before me in his valiant green armor and graceful, authentic white robes. It seemed as if it had been an eternity since I last saw him. For a brief moment, I felt something in me. It was the same sensation I always experienced when I was in his presence, a feeling I never wanted to let go. It was a kindness and virtue only he possessed that me a glimmer of hope when I was so overcome with despair. In that surreal instance, I was with him. It didn't seem to matter to me whether I was dead or if this was merely a dream. All that mattered was the satisfaction of normalcy, contentment, and peace where there had been none for so long._

_Alas, like everything else, it was torn from me._

_With a distant gaze, he walked into me, passing through me as if I were a ghost, and I could instantly sense his aura fading away. Before I could turn around to stop him, he had already vanished._

_I couldn't explain exactly why I felt it, but there was a deep sadness that overcame me, as if just then, after everything was set in place, I had lost him once and for all._

_No...I didn't lose him. I drove him away, didn't I?_

"True warriors know only suffering, Zhang Liao. If you can endure this pain, then there is no enemy that can hurt you."_ The flying general's cruel words replayed in my head._

_I picked up on a towering presence behind me, and two broad, muscular arms were wrapped around me._

_"When there's no enemy that can hurt you, the only people that can are ones close to you" I stated with finality, knowing the one who stood behind me; The only one who had ever stood behind me._

_"Having come to that conclusion, Zhang Liao..." Lu Bu's arms were taken from around me, and his gruff voice moved closer to my ear, "...you finally know who your real enemy is."_

_I gasped as a terrifying pain erupted through my core. To my horror, I looked down to see a bloody knife protruding from chest. Clenching my teeth, I gripped the blade. Out of instinct, I finally garnered the urge to resist him, but he held the blade in me with superior force._

_Pained coughs began to rack my body. I trembled and convulsed as wave after wave of numbing pain burned through my flesh. Blood eased up forcefully through my throat and dripped off my chin._

_My vision rapidly blurred. My legs felt as if they were turning into sand With the blade still in me, I fell onto my knees, trying to hold on to what little energy I had, but knowing the effort was futile. I collapsed onto my side, still clenching the blade and the wound, but doing nothing to stop the stream of blood pouring out of me. My vision blurred, and the blackness came back to swallow me again. The wind faded into a hollow fanfare of chaos, before finally being silenced._

_The pain continued to propel me into perpetual darkness. It mattered not if I were awake or sleeping, alive or dead. I would always be succumbed to suffering. I would always feel this way. I had driven away everything that had ever graced me with their humanity._

_I chose the path of the demon._

I would never be human.


End file.
